one point five

Today we're celebrating 1.5 years of marriage. Luke woke me up initially by telling me he re-set the alarm for me, and then when I turned off that alarm and went back to sleep, he woke me a third time with this great spread of our favorite breakfast foods. Can't beat grapefruit juice in the morning. Can't beat a husband who loves cookin' me eggs.

And if you think it's silly/adorable/absurd that we're celebrating the 1.5 marker, I should tell you that during our first year of matrimony we celebrated a little something we liked to call monthiversaries. 

date cards

On a recent date night, Luke decided to present me with some options via these date cards. On the outside of these notes are visual representations of the dates described within. Can you guess what each one is? (at one point, I thought luke was going to buy me a puppy. that was not true.)

Also, today we took a tour of Woodland Farms (owned by Steve Wilson of 21c and Proof) in Goshen and met sweet Stephanie who runs the garden there.  It's a sight to behold and you can only come by invitation.  We were also lucky enough to watch some of my co-workers try to cross the pond via zip-line and not even come close to making it.  Then, 1 of the 3 said co-workers hung upside down like a monkey and shimmied himself across the zip-line to untangle it, only to have it tangle again when he dropped back into the water. Maybe it's one of those "you had to be there" moments, but I'll tell you, there was a lot of laughing happening. And maybe some snarky jokes.

labor day weekend: a little less labor, a lot of frisbeer and babes

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sunday

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a sassy barista making sassy drinks.

 a sunlit window and 2 chairs just for us.

groce family lunch. sweet zinny with luke; loula and proud papa simon. 

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monday

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ending work early. buying cheese and beer. loading up the "picnic backpack". the new favorite game, frisbeer/beer pole/bottle topple, and it's fierce (and I mean fierce) competitors. ladies loungin' on the blanket with the small ones who need us. boys climbin' trees and making us laugh. shorts too short and hats just right. what else is new?

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husband

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weekday dates

After a long weekend full of work and work and working and doing some more work, Lukey and I had a nice Monday date. We bought a loaf of bread, some gouda and swiss, and opened a bottle of Trader Joe's Malbec for the occasion. It really was a pretty divine evening, as you can tell from the photo above. But not without a near disaster. Bear with me.

I think there is a temptation in blogging - probably the very reason why blogging is so popular - to put your best face forward. To create an image of yourself and your life that is both palatable and desirable by others. The great freedom of blogging is that it can be as brazen or as glossy as you want . My thoughts on this have kind of stemmed from my increasing boredom in looking at blogs that are predictable and formulaic - sweet and light like baby's breath, to dark and strung out like a hipster's hair-do. But, also, and maybe especially, from my own blogging. It's easy to post pretty pictures of the farm, sweet stories about what we're eating and doing, or dates we've had. And, in a way, that's all I want to show you, because that's what I want to remember most.

But, really, there's more. And farming isn't easy. And being a farmer's wife isn't easy. And dealing with sin is amplified when you're too busy or too apathetic or too exhausted to care.

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So, that's our life - there's a lot of beauty in it to be thankful for. And, certainly, my husband is a man above the rest - and I wonder at God's mercy in giving him to me - but there are times when we choose not to love each other well. When a long day at work, or a day's worth of failed expectations, or poor communication mars our beautiful, sun-glowing image of a couple in love - a couple who believes that there is no condemnation for us; a couple who recited at their wedding "I will forgive you as I have been forgiven". 


 For example, the aforementioned Monday date. We planned the date because it would be our last evening together that week before I left town for the weekend. We planned to skip out on the farm that afternoon and drive to the quarry, have a picnic and good conversation. One errand led to another, one task ran into the next, and before we knew it, two o'clock had become five and five became seven. I was disappointed and inconsolable, Luke was discouraged by his unloving wife. After multiple attempts to challenge me (which turned into urging and then to begging) to choose to be happy about the date we landed on, I finally, reluctantly, came round. 


Sometimes there's just something so comfortable about sitting waist-deep in the muck of your sinful choices.  I've always loved rebellion - it's my comfort zone, you might say.  So it's still a hard thing for me to remember that Christ has made for a different script when it comes to those situations:  I don't have to choose this anger anymore, I can and should be gracious with my husband, I don't have to be prideful or angry that I didn't choose it sooner, I am NOT condemned for being an unloving wife, Luke will forgive me when I apologize, we can reconcile and forget and enjoy the last rays of golden sunlight tonight.
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Luke and I on a Sunday date.  It's the second Sunday I've had off work since May and the first time we've had the whole day together since then. It was really glorious.  And I mean that - with all the highs and lows and in-betweens - we had it all. We want it all.

taking care of things

From Thursday to today, Luke was out of town in Atlanta with his bros. I say "bros," because it seems the best word to use for a group of 12 college friends who have spent the entire year planning said weekend around any leisure sport they can come up with. Note the word leisure in that last sentence.

So, I, for the first time, was home taking care of things. And I really enjoyed it. I spent the week prior to his departure concocting surprises for him upon his return. Volunteers came out to the farm to help me pick for the market - and we weeded, hoed, planted, and picked til I didn't think I could move anymore. That night, I found myself asleep at 6 o'clock, drooling (yes, literally) on my pillow. So, I cleaned myself up and went to Proof on Main for a treat (it helps when you work there. They give you special surprises in the form of Pappy Van Winkle 15 year....). I missed Luke's company. Before we dated, I would often go out to bars or restaurants by myself and truly enjoyed it - the freedom of singleness, I suppose. But, as I sat there, drinking my bourbon and watching the bar televisions with no sound (and no captions), I thought, I don't really miss this at all. The conversation that Luke and I have is so good. The way we enjoy food is so mutual. His company is really the best part of going out to fancy places like that.

The next morning I rose early to prepare for the market. It took me several hours and I was very, very tired. This may have been the only part of the weekend that I didn't enjoy. Contrary to what you might think about me, my least favorite part of farming is the farmer's market. I'm not sure if it's because we haven't generated a following yet or if folks' critical comments about our hard-earned produce pricks my anger...but I usually gladly let Luke take this area over. Noel and Tyler and Royal came to the rescue around 11 and brought me some coffee and company.

The last surprise of the weekend was to fix the greenhouse and mow our front and back yard. I wish I had a 'before' picture of this for those of you who aren't familiar with the disaster that was our yard. Every time I looked at the combination of our trash-filled, overgrown yard and our greenhouse-turned-junkyard, I thought about how we're supposed to be combating the ghetto, not contributing to it.

So, two friends from community group came over and, boy, did we do it. Jennifer picked out all the volunteer tomato plants, random bricks and trash, and extension chords from amidst the weeds while Steve and I started to tackle the greenhouse. His mathematical mind and compulsion to finish tasks completely, came in real handy. It was hot. Much hotter than I thought it would be. And we were right in the sun the whole time. When Steve took a break for water, you would wonder how he had time to down a 16oz glass before he was back out in the heat. BUT we got it finished. And I mowed the lawn and weeded after they left, dripping with sweat and sticky with salt and dirt.

Now, Luke is on his way home and I am having coffee on the front porch, resting from the weekend's work. I had a great time taking care of things. I keep saying that; it seems the best way to describe the simplicity and the work of this weekend. I've loved anticipating Luke's reactions to the work, but also I've just enjoyed doing the work: being the farmer, tending to the home, and enjoying the pleasure of seeing it all completed.

Today is Sunday and I am resting (for the first Sunday since May, actually). The only thing I didn't finish on my list of surprises was to learn stick shift (I know, lame that I don't already know). But I'm okay with that. I might see if I can clean out his truck for him before he gets home...

update: I did clean out the truck. I had to bust out the shop-vac to pick up years worth of dirt and debris. Oh, man, I'm so excited for him to see it!

the beasts

for this one moment there was quiet.

p.s. coming soon: stories of picnics, cabins, and bears - no lie.

p.s.

have y'all met our housemates?

Well, here they are.

Everyone, meet the Jenningseses!

I never know how to pluralize their name.

Also, they are great.

the power might go out

It's raining again (!) - I promise I don't just post when it rains, but there is a strange coincidence in it all that I might need to explore. Rue is in her house freaking out because of the thunder and I feel badly for her.

Tonight is my first dinner shift at Proof. I'm wearing a dress and I did my makeup. I'm silly excited/nervous. Last night we stayed up very late (11p) and played in a friend's pool and drank sangria (IN the pool!). Luke went down the slide frontwards-feet-first, frontwards-face-first, and backwards-face-first; the latter being the one that hurt the worst, he says. It did make a pretty loud clapping noise when his back hit the water. There were several other injuries that night, but we won't go into that.

All of that happened at the end of the hottest day of the year. The heat index was 115. We got out to the farm at 7am and worked until we got the work done/were too dizzy from the heat. It was lovely to be out as the sun was coming up (this is how Luke usually does it, but I am always already at work on those mornings). And I took some pictures, so you can see for yourself what a day might look like on the farm.

And a special congratulations to this sweet couple on their recent engagement!

july, july

"this barren July,
we both wake up so dry,
that no more tears can leave us.
and all we've found
are roads we can't go down,
eyes on the day we can't see.
I hope it comes, I hope that water comes,
and drenches us in our clothes.
the world that night had seen the greatest light,
too much light to deny..."

Last night I woke to lightening and heavy rain. Oh, Lord, thank you. My husband watches the weather every second when there is a chance of rain. And every time he clicks the "future radar" button online, he says, "not that this is ever accurate..." and watches, holding his breath, as the fuzzy pixels move in punctuated bursts across our area.
But, today, it happened. That 60% chance skyrocketed and our hearts became 100% full as we worked - past the point of our clothes being wet - and until our bodies could not even take in any more water. how happy we are.

"July, July
the man I love and I, will lift our heads together
July, July, I have seen the greatest light -
too much light to deny."
July, by The Innocence Mission

hi(gh) heat!

We've been out of commission with the interweb since about a month ago, so there is a lot to update you all about:

------- I have left my post as manager at the coffee shop and now am working for a great restaurant/hotel in the city (Proof)serving breakfast and lunch. It's been a seamless and enjoyable transition for both myself and Luke. He drops me off at work around 6a, heads out to the farm, picks me up when my shift is done, we have lunch, and then head out to the farm again. We love routine! AND we've even been able to sell some of our produce to the restaurant!

------- Luke has been full time at the farm since April and is loving it. He does a wonderful job caring for the crops, knowing what they need and when, and creating innovative ways to irrigate/till/etc when the normal means falls through. Every day we are learning and constantly journaling in our "farm journal" about what we want to do differently next year or expand upon. We look forward to each week, as it means something different at the farm - one crop finishes, another is in full swing, another needs weeding, another is ready to be planted. Our land is filling up fast!

------- We've taken on roommates! Darren and Brittany Jennings (just married this week!) will move in with us on Saturday when they return from their honeymoon. We are so excited to share our home with them and watch our home become a collective "ours". We've been humbled and impressed with their maturity and faith. We anticipate this next season of our lives to be one of encouragement, fun, and challenging growth.


me and luke posing in our "new" hats that were mysteriously set on top of our trash can a couple of weeks ago. not pictured are all the silk flowers and lace we tore off of them.




Tuesday Jennings, the other newest addition to our home (Rue is freaking out).


me and Luke being farmers at the phoenix hill market. Don't worry, I turn the scary-face off for the customers.


Erin and I on her back porch after a lovely Memorial Day brunch...sooo lovely.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (aka Luke Groce cleaning out our basement and finding his fifteen year old glasses)